Indian Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar on Monday said that the BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles will now be the key and primary weapon of the Indian Navy and will replace the older system which was acquired from other countries.

BrahMos will be our primary weapon now as the surface-to-surface missile weapon. Probably the Air Force and the air fighters also will have that as the primary air-to-surface weapon. This has evolved in range, in capabilities, in its lethality, and so on. So, this is going to be the mainstay for some time and that is why we are replacing all old missiles with this... and we are installing the BrahMos. Now, we have the expertise to install it in a very quick time," Navy chief told ANI in an interview. The Navy chief also highlighted that this missile is ‘made in India’ and is highly advantageous.

"It is a very potent missile, and it has been evolving also, in range capability and so on. So the fact is that it is made in India, so we are not dependent on anybody else. It can be repaired, and spares are available. So it's a great advantage," he said.

The Navy chief’s comments come after the cabinet committee on security cleared the Rs 19,000 crore contract for over 20 BrahMos missiles. It is being said that the deal is set to be signed on the 5th of March.

The Navy chief made the comments on the sidelines of the closing ceremony of the defence expo in Pune which he visited on Monday. During his visit to various stalls of various defence manufacturing MSME industries, the Navy Chief highlighted the significance of MSME in India's mission to become Atmnirbhar Bharat in defence manufacturing.

The Navy Chief said,"This is a unique exhibition. They have been able to bring together several MSMEs... It is very important that we develop the ecosystem and environment for indigenization. Defence Expos facilitate this and encourage indigenous production... MSME expos like this have huge significance. Over 118 contracts have been signed and around 10-12 products have also been approved. There are a lot of things we are getting from MSMEs and startups."

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